I did the South America semester in the spring of 2024. I was super nervous to go to TTS my junior spring, and to be honest I faced a fair amount of homesickness, but I don’t regret it a single bit. I really wanted to leave my high school for a bit and I met my best friends for life. You make such a close connection with everyone and these are people I thought I would never even come across because we all have such different lifestyles. Not only are the friends great but this is truly an experience no other high schooler will experience. Yes classes and homework sometimes isn’t my favorite, but the people I met and cultures and places I saw is truly something I never would have imagined experiencing. Seeing places like the salt flats, an active silver mine, and the amazon jungle are things I never thought I would put on my bucket list let alone cross off. I also was really able to grow my spanish skills and now I want to continue my Spanish education into college, which is surprising since all of middle school and high school I’ve strongly disliked Spanish class. Meeting locals was also a really big highlight for me; I would just feel so much more connected to the new environment we were in when I got to get to know the people around me, and practice my Spanish skills. Also, we do so many random fun activities like zip lining, surfing, tubing, rafting, and so much more while your school friends back at home are taking a test because it’s a Tuesday. Overall, I am so happy that I really pushed myself out of my comfort zone because everyone tells me I came back a different person, as I’m more confident in myself and when I’m with the people around me, and I am so much more knowledgeable than before. TTS really help set me up for success since I not only grew as a student but as a person.
What was the most surprising thing you saw or did?
Three of the most surprising things I did was see the Bolivian salt flats, try surfing for the first time, and explore an active silver mine with some pretty tight tunnels.